Rescuers of Jews
Kama Ginkas remembers:
I have to tell you about Broliukas. That was Bronius Gotautas, a monk, but everybody called him Broliukas. He denied being a monk, he never wore a monk’s clothes, and people said he did it to avoid putting blame on the monastery if he were caught. Broliukas would pass on to the Jews the counterfeited passports which were made by priests. He was illiterate, which is why he used to put passports for women into one pocket and passports for men into another one, so the people he delivered them could find themselves their own documents. He was a fantastic person and he did it because of God. In the true sense. Finally they caught him, arrested him and somehow he found himself in Germany. In approximately 1950 my father suddenly received his letter via the Red Cross. Imagine Stalinist Kaunas and a letter from the American zone! Broliukas asked us to help him return to his homeland. This person had no idea what was going on here. My father was in despair. How could he explain to – “live where you are and don’t go here!” ? Even if they would not shoot him in the Soviet Union or exiled him to Siberia (which was highly improbable), then he would start saving, for example, forest brothers. That was his vocation. When the Soviet army came in 1940, he hid the so-called Lithuanian nationalists. When the Germans came, he started saving Jews and Russian soldiers. I do not know exactly what my father did. Perhaps he did not reply to his letter. Maybe Broliukas thought my father was horribly ungrateful but that was how he saved Broliukas’ life.
From the 4th book Hands Bringing Life and Bread The Vilna Gaon State Jewish Museum
I have to tell you about Broliukas. That was Bronius Gotautas, a monk, but everybody called him Broliukas. He denied being a monk, he never wore a monk’s clothes, and people said he did it to avoid putting blame on the monastery if he were caught. Broliukas would pass on to the Jews the counterfeited passports which were made by priests. He was illiterate, which is why he used to put passports for women into one pocket and passports for men into another one, so the people he delivered them could find themselves their own documents. He was a fantastic person and he did it because of God. In the true sense. Finally they caught him, arrested him and somehow he found himself in Germany. In approximately 1950 my father suddenly received his letter via the Red Cross. Imagine Stalinist Kaunas and a letter from the American zone! Broliukas asked us to help him return to his homeland. This person had no idea what was going on here. My father was in despair. How could he explain to – “live where you are and don’t go here!” ? Even if they would not shoot him in the Soviet Union or exiled him to Siberia (which was highly improbable), then he would start saving, for example, forest brothers. That was his vocation. When the Soviet army came in 1940, he hid the so-called Lithuanian nationalists. When the Germans came, he started saving Jews and Russian soldiers. I do not know exactly what my father did. Perhaps he did not reply to his letter. Maybe Broliukas thought my father was horribly ungrateful but that was how he saved Broliukas’ life.
From the 4th book Hands Bringing Life and Bread The Vilna Gaon State Jewish Museum